Despite a recent setback, it’s worth mentioning (again) that March is National Peanut Month.

While peanuts are very common today, ancient Peruvians held them in such high esteem that they buried pots of peanuts with their mummified dead to nourish them during their long journey to the hereafter.

Although a nut in the culinary sense, in the botanical sense the fruit of the peanut is a woody, indehiscent legume. However you categorize them, peanuts are a nutritional knockout, having pound for pound more protein, minerals, & vitamins than some cuts of beef. They provide protection against cardiovascular disease due to high levels of monounsaturated fats and powerful antioxidants Resveratrol & p-Coumaric acid.

Peanut butter is the leading use of peanuts in the U.S. but the incredibly versatile peanut also has a wide variety of non-food uses too. Peanut oil and its derivatives are used in paint, varnish, lubricating oil, leather dressing, furniture polish, insecticide, nitroglycerin, soap, & cosmetics. Peanut shells and other parts of the plant are often used in the manufacture of plastic, wallboard, abrasives, adhesives, textiles, paper, soil fertilizer, & animal feed.

So grab up a fistfull of peanuts and enjoy!
 

Labels: food